About Us

We are a collective group of individuals and corporate organisations, who recognise the value contribution made by volunteers technicians across 100,000+ Houses of Worship and amateur Arts Venues across the UK, who simply would not function without them.
The AWVT exists to support and enhance the skills of volunteer technicians operating across multiple technologies to better serve their venues. We focus on developing training standards, curriculum frameworks, and certification processes tailored to their needs.
Our Core Values
- Volunteers technicians matter
- All AV professionals started as passionate volunteers
- You can only perform well when you clearly know what you are doing and why
- You can always get better at what you do
- You get better through learning and applying it
Our Mission & Vision
Our Mission – To empower volunteer technicians by setting professional training standards and certification frameworks, enabling them to achieve excellence in technical systems management and operation.
Our Vision – To become the leading authority on technical training for volunteer technicians, ensuring that every House of Worship and arts venue has access to qualified and skilled individuals.
What We Do
Standards and Curriculum Development: - We design comprehensive training standards across eight technical disciplines: Stage Systems, Audio, Projection, Lighting, Video, Broadcasting, ICT, and Technical Management. Certification: - AWVT provides independent assessments and certifications, ensuring technicians can demonstrate their expertise to peers and organisations. Support for Trainers and Organisations: - We connect venues and individuals with qualified trainers, course materials, and peer-reviewed certification programs.”

Why The AWVT Matters
Since the development of the microphone, speaker and amplifier, the Arts and Houses of Worship have enthusiastically adopted modern technology as a means to explore and to communicate. However, the big change came in 2020 with Covid-19 lockdowns and so many organisations rapidly extended their technology base with the help of out-of-work professional technicians. Then after lockdowns ended and those professionals went back to work, those left in the organisations looked-on at this new technology equipment with bewilderment, not knowing how to use it effectively.
It has been known for decades that most current professionals in the AV and other technology sectors first learned their craft and passion for it as volunteers in Houses of Worship and amateur Arts Venues. However, learning by experiment is hard and only a few are fortunate enough to go on to University or be offered an Apprenticeship in order to benefit from formal training in the subjects. Unfortunately, there is no formal curriculum which volunteers can access to learn the skills they need to do their volunteer roles well.
Having trained volunteers in these contexts over a number of decades, the lack of a formal standardisation, unclear curriculum, variability of trainees and expectations, poor educational approach and delivery of training has left volunteers very under-served. As a result a large group of House of Worship and Arts Venue volunteer technicians, along with industry professionals, met in 2023 & 2024 to discuss how it might be possible up-skill volunteer technicians in a more constructive and productive manner.
The outcome of those discussions was the establishment of the AWVT, the development of the 8 thematic roles and a highly granular approach to the curriculum model that would be easily accessible to volunteers regardless of background. In Jan 2024 the AWVT was incorporated as a membership organisation to act as the vehicle to develop, own and manage the standards, develop the curriculum and liaise between trainers, trainees and assessors.
Volunteer technicians are the backbone of countless worship and arts events. By providing a clear path to training and certification, we ensure their efforts are recognized and their skills are continually developed.
Get Involved
Are you interested in supporting AWVT’s mission?
We need:
- Web & database developers (linux/PHP)
- Photographers & Videographers
- Teachers/trainers/assessors
- Subject matter expert contributors (Stage hands, Audio, Projection, Lighting, Video, Broadcasting, ICT, etc.)
- Volunteer technicians
- House of Worship & Arts Venue/Troupe/Band leaders
- Administrators
- Regional co-ordinators
- Social Media marketeers
So, if you believe you are able to make a difference, get in touch!